What is the difference between a weather watch and a warning?

A watch means the conditions are right for dangerous weather, so be prepared. A warning means the dangerous weather is happening or about to, so take action now.

Can I rely on a weather app for severe weather warnings?

Use it as an extra, not your only source. Keep your phone’s emergency alerts on and follow your national weather service, especially when a watch or warning is in place.

Why didn’t I get an alert?

Check that notifications are allowed for the app in your phone’s settings, that the alert type is switched on inside the app, and that the place you care about is saved. On some Android phones a battery saver can delay background checks; setting the app’s battery use to Unrestricted helps.

Weather alerts explained: watch vs warning, and alerts on your phone

A weather watch means dangerous weather is possible, so be ready. A warning means it is happening or about to, so act now. An advisory is for weather that is a nuisance more than a danger. On your phone you can get official warnings from your national weather service, and weather apps can add their own alerts worked out from the forecast. They are different things, and it helps to know which one you are looking at.

Watch, warning and advisory

These are the terms the US National Weather Service uses, and many apps follow them:

Watch	Conditions are right for the hazard to develop. It may not happen, but be prepared and keep checking.
Warning	The hazard is happening, about to happen, or very likely. Take action to protect yourself now.
Advisory	Less serious weather that is still a real inconvenience, such as fog or minor flooding. Take care.

Other countries use different systems. Much of Europe uses colour levels, yellow, orange (or amber) and red, where red means dangerous weather and taking action. The idea is the same: the higher the level, the more serious and the more certain.

Official warnings vs app alerts

Official warnings are issued by a national weather service, such as the US National Weather Service or the UK Met Office, for a defined area and time. They are the ones to act on.

Forecast-based alerts are created by an app from the forecast for your saved places: “rain starting in 30 minutes”, “strong wind tomorrow”, “temperature below freezing tonight”. They are useful reminders, but nobody has reviewed them, and they do not replace an official warning.

A good setup uses both:

Keep your phone’s emergency alerts on, for the most serious official warnings.
Use a weather app for the everyday heads-up: rain, wind, heat and cold.

Turn on emergency alerts on your phone

Phones can receive official emergency alerts directly from the authorities (in the US, Wireless Emergency Alerts; in the EU, public warning systems such as EU-Alert). These are usually on by default, but check:

Android: Settings → Safety & emergency (or Notifications) → Wireless emergency alerts. The menu name varies by phone maker.
iPhone: Settings → Notifications, then scroll to the bottom to Government Alerts.

Weather alerts in our apps

Transparent Clock & Weather (Android) sends severe weather alerts with a Premium subscription: storms, heavy rain, high winds and other dangerous weather near you. For US locations it can use National Weather Service warnings.

Local Weather Forecast & Radar (Android and iPhone) creates alerts from the forecast for your saved places: severe weather, rain or snow on the way, high and low temperatures and strong wind, plus optional morning and evening summaries. You choose which ones you get.